Beginner's Luck
by Fade into Shadows
Summary: When traumatized, it is common for a child to find comfort in one person- whether it is from the shock, or yearn for attention is unknown. Children from ninja villages are no different. When Kakashi is forced to care for a child- a child he originally only imagined seeing once in his life, it becomes painfully obvious to him how difficult the future will be from what he imagined.


**The Kanji that I am using for Yuuchou's name would be****幽鳥****. I'm nowhere close to a Kanji expert, having only taken a Japanese 1 class so far. However I have a minor grasp on the language, and unless I am mistaken those two Kanji should suffice fine for the name.**

**Honestly, I don't know how long I will keep this story up. It's just a plot that I thought of after reading some fanfiction from another Fandom. I haven't actually watched the Naruto series in over 3 years, and I never got to Shippuden. Therefore, if I do continue this story, I will (obviously) be watching Naruto episodes. I hope that if I make mistakes that reviewers will point them out. Flames are welcome- I may not like it, but harsh criticism is good for writing. If I mess up on a major plot line somehow, please call me out on it, even if you wish to be harsh. I'll get over my anger and take those words and develop my writing with them. Also, most of the information I gather is from the Naruto Wiki.**

**I don't own Naruto, I only own the Clan and those who live in it. This first chapter takes place approximately a year after the Kyuubi attacked Konoha. The clan moved to the outskirts of the village closer to the beginning of the Second Shinobi war. They didn't abandon the village, but merely found that training in the outskirts was better than being inside the walls because of how their Bloodline develops.**

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Bodies were strewn all throughout the town. Burn wood hung from rusted nails, and trails of blood where smeared throughout the town, splattered onto broken walls, and gravel. A tragedy had occurred yet again- another clan, wiped out by an opposing clan. It was a terribly common thing, with the weaker clans constantly being wiped out. Land was precious to everyone- more training space, and more room to populate and grow.

The invader ninja had killed everyone. Or almost everyone- some people had been left dying, from blood loss or shock. In a small corner, an entire pile of bodies was strewed carelessly. As if they where trash- nothing better than a mutt.

Weak sobbing was coming from the corner, and a tiny body was huddled against the pale figure of a man. Her father, the clan head. He was her role model- the person that she aspired to be like. Strong in every way, and kind to every soul. Even those travelers who would occasionally stumble upon their clan village where treated kindly until they could go on their way.

He was shushing the girl though, his ripped arms holding the toddler close to his chest. He was quickly bleeding out from the grave injuries that he had acquired in an attempt to fight back the intruders. Their bloodline wasn't a strong one- many ninja would've found it useless in battle. It wasn't even fully developed until mid adult-hood usually, making it a severe inconvenience to the holder.

"Yuuchou...cease your crying." He wheezed, his lungs burning with the words. Hot smoke from the dying flames wafted above their heads, and the hot burning from the smoke only strengthened the toddler's screaming more. If any ninja remained, they would for sure hear her, and come to finish them off.

Her father had known such a day would come eventually. It was only to be expected. He had planned for everyone but his children to die- that way, their bloodline could continue strong. While still developing, their bloodline was useless- yet when fully developed, it was deadly.

But his plan hadn't gone as he wished. Out of his five children- only one had survived. The others, in the haze of the ambush, had scattered and been picked off one by one by the enemy ninja. He didn't need to investigate to know they all had been killed, or taken in hostage to be studied.

He coughed. The smoke was filling into his lungs more rapidly as he kneeled over, his body hovering over his child like a shield. "P..lease, it is your father's..dying wish. Stay silent until someone arrives for you." He knew that Konoha- the Hidden Village that they originated from- was going to show up eventually. He just hoped they would arrive before the enemy ninja did. His one and only daughter- his pride and joy- she needed to stay alive; keep the bloodline alive.

"Saiai.." He murmured, when she didn't stop crying. It was his nickname for her. Her attention perked just the lightest bit, though her violent shaking didn't stop. "More ninja..will arrive." When he saw panic flash in her dark eyes, he elaborated. "Konoha..you remember the st-stories I told you about them, right?"

She nodded, just barely, beginning to stop her cries. Snot dripped from her nose, and she wiped it away with a small fist. "D..Do you, remember the symbol on their headband? Dr..Draw it out, for your father."

Obediently, she crawled out from under him, trailing her chubby finger in the gravel beneath them. Something had sparked in her when she heard 'Konoha'.

In the past, she had spent many evenings with her older brothers running around their house playing various games. On more than one occasion, they would reenact a tale their father had told them about- The Third Shinobi war. It was hard to do, with only five people- children nonetheless- but they would always have fun with it.

Each of them would play one of the nations. Being that she was the youngest, and the smallest, Yuuchou would usually end up being Earth. Sometimes, she wondered if it was a play on her name- the kanji her parents had chosen had the word mountain in it, after all. Her oldest brother was always Fire, and the others would switch up every so often.

Her brothers would find a piece of cloth, and tape a nicely sized piece of cardboard in the center. They would then draw the spiral, leaf-like design with precise- or as precise as a ten year old could get- accuracy. She remembered her father once telling them that the symbol meant, 'Spirit of Fire'. None of them knew what the other country's symbols resembled, so for their own headbands they would draw whatever seemed 'cool' to them.

After the headbands had all been drawn and put together, the five would throw plastic and wooden kunai and shuriken that they had 'borrowed' from their father's stash. She had always assumed he knew, though their father never brought it up to them if he did.

Being that she was only four, she had found it terribly difficult and was usually announced as 'dead' by one of her brothers within the first ten minutes. As the games continued though, she slowly- but surely- began to pick up and learn the techniques her brother's used.

It had always been fun, and now more than anything she wished for those days back. Her clan had always called her the 'genius' of the family, but it had never showed unless she was around her family. She picked up things quickly, but her skills where sloppy, and untrained. Plus, she was only two- sure, her mother had begun training her to read 'Hiragana', but they hadn't even gotten halfway through the alphabet.

"That's right." Her father praised, as he looked down at the drawing of Konoha's symbol. It was messy, and she had added too many spirals, but it was good enough. Her finger had been shaking when she drew it, but it was obvious she knew _what_ the symbol looked like. Yuuchou looked up at him, her eyes faltering as she saw his pale face. It was scary to watch her father dying- even if she didn't know he was, she could tell that _something_ was happening to him. "You're a very smart girl, Saiai."

Yuuchou brought her tan hand up to his face, and ran her chubby fingers across the stubble on his chin. She liked the feeling of it, and her hand dropped after a few seconds. His face was cold...and it scared her. He was only getting paler, as well.

"Papa?" She said quietly, lying down on her stomach with her head resting on her arms. Her crying had stopped, and for an unknown reason she felt…oddly calm. Her father was getting quieter, and his breathing was slowing down considerably. He would be dead soon, even if she didn't know what 'dead' was. For a toddler, it was just like sleeping…for a long time. That's how her father had always described 'death' to her.

Her father had lain back against the wall, and Yuuchou crawled over to him, resting her head on his chest. She was scared, but something- something was blocking her from showing it. But with the fear, that odd lingering calmness remained. It was hard to believe that she had been screaming just minutes before, and although her breathing hadn't returned to normal, she was…calm.

"When…the ninja arrive, ask to see their headband." He pressed a bloody finger against her forehead. "If it's not that symbol, run. Run..as far and as fast as you can." He knew that she would be caught if it was the invaders, but he hoped that the words would at least guide the girl. At four years and eleven months, he didn't know if she would freeze up or run away- better to be safe than sorry.

The blood trickled down her forehead to the space between her eyes, and Yuuchou rubbed at it, nodding at her father. The blood smeared across the stop of her hand, and her hand and she hugged the man before her, sniffling.

Her father patted her head, leaning his head back wearily. His eyes shut, and a loose, but still visible smile came to his face as he thought over his life.

While the end of it hadn't been the best, he had done his duty. He had kept one of the clan alive, to preserve and continue the bloodline. He had a family, and he had spent many years with them in harmony.

With the thoughts in his mind, he had no real reason to fear death. He feared for his remaining child, yes. But he trusted in Konoha- he trusted they would arrive first.

* * *

Kakashi stared down at the destroyed village, almost shocked at the damage. When the Hokage had sent him onto the mission, he had expected destruction. That was the whole point of such missions- to decide the damage, and pick up any survivors.

But it was nearly impossible to tell what had even existed there with the damage. The clan was located near a rather large chain of mountains, which made it a common stopping place for travelers. Many people would've called it foolish and dangerous, but the clan had created its own town and was willing to share that with people.

_It was probably the exact thing that had lead to their downfall_. Kakashi thought to himself, almost amused.

He jumped from the cliff top he was on, making his way down the dirty trail and into the heart of the village. Now that he was actually there, he could survey the damage for the mission reports.

It definitely _stunk_, he realized. Like burning flesh.

_A fire jutsu?_ He guessed. Black smoke lingered in the air, and he was thankful for the protection his mask gave him from it.

Rubble was everywhere, and as he walked further through the village, the damage began getting worse. It was obvious that the attackers had been looking for something- someone in particular. When they didn't find it, they became annoyed and did more damage.

He stepped over the dismembered hand in his path, not even flinching. He was a ninja, and dead bodies didn't unnerve him. It wasn't the most pleasant sight for the eyes, nonetheless.

It had taken him nearly twenty minutes to reach the clan head house. He had found no traces of life, and nothing had indicated a survivor. The clan house didn't seem any different in that aspect. A pile of bodies was near the corner, and he made his way over to the pile, kneeling down.

_The Clan Head._ He realized, as he stared at the face of the man. He looked..oddly happy. The faint upcurve of his lips indicated that he had…died smiling?

An odd thing, for sure.

He stood up, running a hand through his messy silver hair. That had been pointless. It seemed as if e_veryone_ had died in the ambush. A bit disappointing, but it wasn't uncommon with Clan inhalations.

There was a rustle behind him, and Kakashi quickly drew a kunai. He whipped around, prepared to strike when he stopped. He had spoken _much_ too soon when he said no one survived.

Only a few feet away from him sat a tiny child. Her dark eyes were staring at him, and the wispy blond hair - a direct giveaway of her heritage - on her head tumbled over her shoulders. Her gaze was fixated on the kunai in his hand, and she seemed to shrink further into the bushes as he moved towards her.

"Uh.." Kakashi started, a bit awkwardly. He placed his kunai back in his pouch, rubbing his head. "Sorry, did I scare you?" He knew it was a stupid question- of _course_ it had scared her. He very quickly expanded his chakra. It washed over the child- he was making sure it actually _was_ a child, and not an imposter using a sort of illusion, or disguise.

Sure enough, her chakra was only that of a normal child. Nothing dangerous inside of her and nothing that would indicate foul play.

Kakashi rubbed his head again, a bit unsure of what to do. He wasn't good with children, especially those under the age to even enter the academy.

"I didn't mean to- I thought you might be the enemy who killed everyone here." The girl's eyes didn't leave him, and Kakashi couldn't help but sigh. He was positively terrible with children.

He was surprised when she lifted a tiny hand at him and made a beckoning signal. He willingly made his way over to her (he, a ninja, was following a toddler's directions- how silly) and crouched on the ground next to her.

She sat on her knees, lifting a hand up to his headband. Her finger traced the engraved symbol in the metal, and quietly she said, "Konoha..."

Kakashi blinked. "Yes, that's right." He replied, his gaze fixated on her face. She had blood splattered, and smeared on her forehead and cheeks, and the side of her hand was smeared with it as well. "I'm a Konoha ninja, and I've come to bring you there." He hoped- he really hoped that she understood what he was saying.

She was silent for awhile, and Kakashi sighed again. He was about to stand up, and forcefully take her, when she nodded slowly. Her hand dropped from his headband, and she got to her feet. Kakashi did as well, and she held her arms up to him, as if she was asking to be picked up.

Willingly, Kakashi picked her up. If it would get the girl moving, he didn't really care. But he knew that fighting with a child nearby would be dangerous, especially when he didn't know the skills of the ninja who had attacked the village.

She rested her head on his chest, shutting her eyes tiredly. Kakashi briefly wondered who this child was. The Hokage would know. He would let the Hokage deal with the girl- he was just a ninja. It wasn't his responsibility to deal with a child.

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**Thanks for reading, reviews and flames are welcome and encouraged. I don't have a beta reader (I hope I can get one, but I don't exactly know how. I'm very picky and dislike a majority of how the Naruto fandom writes- or really, not a majority, but a lot of fanfiction I have read is...very mediocre (not to say mine isn't), and out of character ect. So I do welcome criticism.**


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